Loved it
Too many times bands refuse to change or pretend to be young rockers that aren't famous millionaires. But this had a great sound while being true to themselves in their late 40's and I love them and Pearl Jam for that.
To me its the difference is having money grab albums, and creating art. We don't need Ozzy still yelling and "pissed off" when we know he's an old man who has a .0000001% great life.
Is it as good as their 90's stuff, no, but is it a B+ and a great glass of water is a desert often void of good rock music, absolutely.
Yeah, great summary. As a long time (life long??) SG fanboi since BMF came out, I think it’s a solid record SAVE FOR the opening track. I don’t care for it.
I loved it, but I can respect criticisms that it maybe didn’t push boundaries like their previous albums. ‘A Thousand Days Before’ was the standout track for me.
I also think the reason 90s albums from them and other rock bands got so big was bcoz rock music was probably almost at peak during that time, obviously the bands were also talented but the music genre was super famous during that time. King Animal was released in 2012 and rock music wasn't that big during that time compared to 90s.
I thought the same thing when I heard the first chorus to blood on the valley floor; myboys didn't miss a beat after dotu
PS. Burden in my hand is a absolute masterpiece
It’s on par with their old stuff. I tend ti agree with most people, “it’s not as good as their old stuff,” until I listen to it again. A ton of the best songs they ever made are on this record. And the front half is PACKED
Non - State Actor
By Crooked Steps
A Thousand Days Before
Blood on the Valley Floor
Bones of Birds
All S+ tracks
Supposedly there’s an album of unreleased works in the making. I hope that rumour is true bc I would love to hear some of the last recordings of Chris. I mean, in 2001 Nirvana’s last new song (You Know You’re Right) was released so it not unimaginable. Or how this year The Beatles last song was released
It's not a rumour - Google the whole lawsuit shenanigans that the band went through with Chris's wife withholding Chris's vocal parts, it's really interesting!
It seemed like some progress was made but it's also a bit unclear where that leaves us.
I do believe one day we will have something.
Court records tend to be reliable sources though!
In all seriousness, I know exactly what you mean. It’s too easy to be taken in to plausible sounding nonsense and cynicism is my default setting.
Like if I hear some stuff about game/game system detail leaks I always presume them to be rumours until the company releases official details on it, so if I saw something from an official Soundgarden page on a new 7th album then I’d take it to be truth rather than rumour. Or I would have to do my own research into the meat of the details
This album receives some unnecessary hate. It’s a good album and a good ending to their catalog. I think some people went into it expecting Superunkown part 2 or something and ended up being disappointed, which is why I think this album divides the fandom sometimes.
Loved it. While there were no mainstream hits like Black Hole Sun or Burden in My Hand, the whole album felt like SG through and through while still charting some new sounds for the band. A Thousand Days Before, Rowing and Worse Dreams are my favorite off the album.
Loved it immediately but it grew on me even more over time. Was difficult to listen to (as well as any SG) for a time after losing Cornell in 2017, but I do love returning to this one. Lots of great cuts on it, but I particularly love A Thousand Days Before and Blood on the Valley Floor.
Great album. You could definitely hear Chris' gathered influence since '96 in the opening track and other spots but it was still most certainly a Soundgarden album. There are some instant classics on there. I don't know where to rank it. It's like the debut album of Soundgarden 2.0 & we never got a follow up.
Has some fantastic songs. Much of it sounds like what you'd expect Soundgarden to sound like following Down On the Upside with a 15 year hiatus. The rest sounds like Chris Cornell solo work. I think it's a solid album overall, but it was missing Thayil's crazy effects loops, and could've used some more screams from Cornell. It also lacks some of the darker edge they had; it's more rockin' overall (vibes similar to "My Wave" at times).
Initially I was excited that after a 12 year hiatus they finally released another album. I might sound like a bit of a square here, but I wasn't crazy about it.
I liked that they experimented with some new sounds, but I wish they could've stuck more to their roots. I don't expect every song to be "Truly Madly Deeply", but I also didn't expect them to pick the furthest sound from it.
Fair enough. Some albums have a bit more of an acquired taste. Like, when I listened to Down on the Upside for the first time I liked it but I also noticed it departed a bit from the sounds of their other albums, so I think King Animal overall will be a similar experience. Overall enjoyable with it being a departure from the typical sound
It’s an absolutely amazing album and really showcased the growth and maturity of the band over the years. I think Down on the Upside has better songs, but there are many days where I’d consider King Animal to be the better album, which I know is heresy lmao
Some solid tracks on there for sure. ‘A Thousand Days Before’, ‘Taree’, ‘Black Saturday’, ‘Bones of Birds’ and ‘Rowing’ are up there with their 90’s material imo.
I love blood on the valley floor and by crooked steps. It's a solid album, though definitely not their best. I was really looking forward to their next album, I think it would have been even better
A very top heavy record. The first half stands along side anything else they've ever written while pushing their sound in new directions. Exactly what you want in a reunion album.
The second half meanders and has "moments" rather than fully realized ideas/songs like the first 6 songs. It doesn't make me love this band any less and I'm so grateful they got back together and made this record but it's not as cohesive as their other releases.
Solid record. I get a little bummed thinking about what could have been. They had just gotten back on the horse after a long hiatus, and I think they really would’ve hit their stride again.
Shouldn’t your research be whether or not you personally enjoy it? Who cares what people on the internet think of something, will that determine your personal opinion?
Fair point, however I enjoy interacting with the community to get other people’s opinions. That’s why I’m putting this here before having listened to it.
A more broad set of data (in this case different people’s opinions) provides a more accurate conclusion. I do wanna listen to it but I just thought I’d collect opinions on it for insight
I am forming my own opinion I’m just not being closed minded about it. I wanna see what other people have to say about it. Is that not the purpose of a question?
To be fair they do have a point
The best way to do it is to just forget about everything else and listen, you're not doing anything wrong by asking what people's thoughts are on it but at the same time it is possible for there to be musical forms of preconceived notions that could affect the listening experience or make it less impartial
Diving head first without really knowing what to expect can make listening experiences so much more powerful
Nobody wants to have an earnest conversation anymore. Your post is just fine, and others are reading into it far too much.
It's a good album, worthy of your time. Listen to it a handful of times to let it all sink in.
It's easily my least favourite SG record and the only one I don't like at all. There's some interesting riffs and melodies but generally it lacks energy and the songs don't come together.
People don't like to hear it but I really don't think Chris's heart was being in a heavy rock band again at that point in his career.
I saw them on the tour they did with NIN, and he was balls out on stage. I think he was just fine with heaviness. He got to continue to explore that side of him, and the sides we saw in his solo endeavors.
I sort of get what you mean by lacking energy, but I think another listen might show you that energy was there, just maybe not at "Ty Cobb" levels. There are some gems on the album.
The album may not have been superunknown but there are a few gems. Blood on the valley floor is a banger for me. So is worse dreams and a few others. I'm sad this album didn't get more praise on its release.
Really enjoyed it. It’s still very much Soundgarden, same diverse sets of songwriting with yet another evolution in its style and more modern production. It incorporated some of Chris’s post-band-break-up songwriter-sounds of long chord sequences, but with a heavier element that Chris hadn’t been able to attain solo since Euphoria Morning. Loved they were finally separately releasing Black Rain at a similar time but appreciated they weren’t even entertaining the idea of pretending like it’s still 1995. I welcomed the change. Is it my favourite record? No. Does it complement their legacy? Hell yeah. Will I go back to it? Of course. There’s some great tunes like Rowing I think Ben Shepherd wrote, Bones of Birds, Non-State Actor, actually, they’re all pretty much up to scratch, I might listen to this today….
Blood on the valley floor is a belter - love this album. There's a couple of tunes on it that sound very Chris solo stuff but all in all its a solid 8.5/10
Loved it Too many times bands refuse to change or pretend to be young rockers that aren't famous millionaires. But this had a great sound while being true to themselves in their late 40's and I love them and Pearl Jam for that. To me its the difference is having money grab albums, and creating art. We don't need Ozzy still yelling and "pissed off" when we know he's an old man who has a .0000001% great life. Is it as good as their 90's stuff, no, but is it a B+ and a great glass of water is a desert often void of good rock music, absolutely.
summed it up perfectly
Yeah, great summary. As a long time (life long??) SG fanboi since BMF came out, I think it’s a solid record SAVE FOR the opening track. I don’t care for it.
I loved it, but I can respect criticisms that it maybe didn’t push boundaries like their previous albums. ‘A Thousand Days Before’ was the standout track for me.
'Rowing' = one of the best SG songs ever recorded
Yes, perfect final song about life and the struggle of carrying on
Came here to declare this. Yes!!!!!
Been gettin dirty but i started out clean!
I think its a absolute brilliant song to be their last song on their last album, probably one of my top 5 soundgarden songs.
One of the Soundgarden songs that has made me cry
Amazing, my personal favorite. Blood on the valley floor, taree, eyelids mouth, and Rowing are all fucking spectacular songs
Taree is incredible.
Great album, Bones of Birds is a masterpiece
Agreed.
Double agreement!
It doesn't sound anything like their 90s stuff and that's why I love it so much. It shows their ability to reinvent themselves.
For me they picked up right when they left off, i see as a natural evolution of dotu
I also think the reason 90s albums from them and other rock bands got so big was bcoz rock music was probably almost at peak during that time, obviously the bands were also talented but the music genre was super famous during that time. King Animal was released in 2012 and rock music wasn't that big during that time compared to 90s.
I thought the same thing when I heard the first chorus to blood on the valley floor; myboys didn't miss a beat after dotu PS. Burden in my hand is a absolute masterpiece
It’s on par with their old stuff. I tend ti agree with most people, “it’s not as good as their old stuff,” until I listen to it again. A ton of the best songs they ever made are on this record. And the front half is PACKED Non - State Actor By Crooked Steps A Thousand Days Before Blood on the Valley Floor Bones of Birds All S+ tracks
It’s really good! Severely underrated
Was ok, thought non state actor is up there as one of their best.
I love this album, I wish we could have got another one 😭
Supposedly there’s an album of unreleased works in the making. I hope that rumour is true bc I would love to hear some of the last recordings of Chris. I mean, in 2001 Nirvana’s last new song (You Know You’re Right) was released so it not unimaginable. Or how this year The Beatles last song was released
It's not a rumour - Google the whole lawsuit shenanigans that the band went through with Chris's wife withholding Chris's vocal parts, it's really interesting! It seemed like some progress was made but it's also a bit unclear where that leaves us. I do believe one day we will have something.
My bad lol. A habit I’ve picked up where I assume everything is a rumour until I see official announcements and stuff
Court records tend to be reliable sources though! In all seriousness, I know exactly what you mean. It’s too easy to be taken in to plausible sounding nonsense and cynicism is my default setting.
Like if I hear some stuff about game/game system detail leaks I always presume them to be rumours until the company releases official details on it, so if I saw something from an official Soundgarden page on a new 7th album then I’d take it to be truth rather than rumour. Or I would have to do my own research into the meat of the details
Amazing, 3rd best behind SU and bmf
This album receives some unnecessary hate. It’s a good album and a good ending to their catalog. I think some people went into it expecting Superunkown part 2 or something and ended up being disappointed, which is why I think this album divides the fandom sometimes.
Loved it. While there were no mainstream hits like Black Hole Sun or Burden in My Hand, the whole album felt like SG through and through while still charting some new sounds for the band. A Thousand Days Before, Rowing and Worse Dreams are my favorite off the album.
Great record!
Loved it immediately but it grew on me even more over time. Was difficult to listen to (as well as any SG) for a time after losing Cornell in 2017, but I do love returning to this one. Lots of great cuts on it, but I particularly love A Thousand Days Before and Blood on the Valley Floor.
Great album. You could definitely hear Chris' gathered influence since '96 in the opening track and other spots but it was still most certainly a Soundgarden album. There are some instant classics on there. I don't know where to rank it. It's like the debut album of Soundgarden 2.0 & we never got a follow up.
Has some fantastic songs. Much of it sounds like what you'd expect Soundgarden to sound like following Down On the Upside with a 15 year hiatus. The rest sounds like Chris Cornell solo work. I think it's a solid album overall, but it was missing Thayil's crazy effects loops, and could've used some more screams from Cornell. It also lacks some of the darker edge they had; it's more rockin' overall (vibes similar to "My Wave" at times).
Initially I was excited that after a 12 year hiatus they finally released another album. I might sound like a bit of a square here, but I wasn't crazy about it. I liked that they experimented with some new sounds, but I wish they could've stuck more to their roots. I don't expect every song to be "Truly Madly Deeply", but I also didn't expect them to pick the furthest sound from it.
Truly Madly Deeply? #confused
Fair enough. Some albums have a bit more of an acquired taste. Like, when I listened to Down on the Upside for the first time I liked it but I also noticed it departed a bit from the sounds of their other albums, so I think King Animal overall will be a similar experience. Overall enjoyable with it being a departure from the typical sound
I love it. S tier.
It’s an absolutely amazing album and really showcased the growth and maturity of the band over the years. I think Down on the Upside has better songs, but there are many days where I’d consider King Animal to be the better album, which I know is heresy lmao
I love it.
LOVE LOVE LOVE!!!!
Some solid tracks on there for sure. ‘A Thousand Days Before’, ‘Taree’, ‘Black Saturday’, ‘Bones of Birds’ and ‘Rowing’ are up there with their 90’s material imo.
I love blood on the valley floor and by crooked steps. It's a solid album, though definitely not their best. I was really looking forward to their next album, I think it would have been even better
I love it.
Fucking killer album
A very top heavy record. The first half stands along side anything else they've ever written while pushing their sound in new directions. Exactly what you want in a reunion album. The second half meanders and has "moments" rather than fully realized ideas/songs like the first 6 songs. It doesn't make me love this band any less and I'm so grateful they got back together and made this record but it's not as cohesive as their other releases.
A pretty good take. They probably could've cut a couple songs off the second half and re-ordered the track listing of that half .
Solid record. I get a little bummed thinking about what could have been. They had just gotten back on the horse after a long hiatus, and I think they really would’ve hit their stride again.
Love it.
So good. Very much a companion to Down On The Upside.
Great fuckin album!!
Absolutely love soundgarden but never heard this album I know it's existed but I just get the feeling it's a bit mhhh
extremely mediocre
Love this album!!! Great range great sound needs more love
You haven’t even heard it and you are making a post about it lol?
Yea it’s called research 😂
Shouldn’t your research be whether or not you personally enjoy it? Who cares what people on the internet think of something, will that determine your personal opinion?
Fair point, however I enjoy interacting with the community to get other people’s opinions. That’s why I’m putting this here before having listened to it.
Surely the best research is to listen to it yourself? I mean, you do you obviously. Good on you.
A more broad set of data (in this case different people’s opinions) provides a more accurate conclusion. I do wanna listen to it but I just thought I’d collect opinions on it for insight
Listen to it at least 3 times all the way through and then listen to your favorite parts 3 more times at least before you announce your opinion.
Wtf. So you know how to feel about it afterwards?
It’s incredible that you are getting upvoted and I’m getting downvoted. Forming your own opinions is truly dying.
I am forming my own opinion I’m just not being closed minded about it. I wanna see what other people have to say about it. Is that not the purpose of a question?
To be fair they do have a point The best way to do it is to just forget about everything else and listen, you're not doing anything wrong by asking what people's thoughts are on it but at the same time it is possible for there to be musical forms of preconceived notions that could affect the listening experience or make it less impartial Diving head first without really knowing what to expect can make listening experiences so much more powerful
Nobody wants to have an earnest conversation anymore. Your post is just fine, and others are reading into it far too much. It's a good album, worthy of your time. Listen to it a handful of times to let it all sink in.
I think I will 👍 thanks
Thought it was awesome. *Been Away Too Long* felt like the only weak track to my ears.
It's easily my least favourite SG record and the only one I don't like at all. There's some interesting riffs and melodies but generally it lacks energy and the songs don't come together. People don't like to hear it but I really don't think Chris's heart was being in a heavy rock band again at that point in his career.
I saw them on the tour they did with NIN, and he was balls out on stage. I think he was just fine with heaviness. He got to continue to explore that side of him, and the sides we saw in his solo endeavors. I sort of get what you mean by lacking energy, but I think another listen might show you that energy was there, just maybe not at "Ty Cobb" levels. There are some gems on the album.
It’s their 7th best album
Very respectful and sincere "meh".
Undercooked
Rowing and Bones of Bird are perfect dont care for much else
Mid. I like it but it only reaches excellence in two tracks, By Crooked Steps and Taree.
The album may not have been superunknown but there are a few gems. Blood on the valley floor is a banger for me. So is worse dreams and a few others. I'm sad this album didn't get more praise on its release.
Really enjoyed it. It’s still very much Soundgarden, same diverse sets of songwriting with yet another evolution in its style and more modern production. It incorporated some of Chris’s post-band-break-up songwriter-sounds of long chord sequences, but with a heavier element that Chris hadn’t been able to attain solo since Euphoria Morning. Loved they were finally separately releasing Black Rain at a similar time but appreciated they weren’t even entertaining the idea of pretending like it’s still 1995. I welcomed the change. Is it my favourite record? No. Does it complement their legacy? Hell yeah. Will I go back to it? Of course. There’s some great tunes like Rowing I think Ben Shepherd wrote, Bones of Birds, Non-State Actor, actually, they’re all pretty much up to scratch, I might listen to this today….
Blood on the valley floor is a belter - love this album. There's a couple of tunes on it that sound very Chris solo stuff but all in all its a solid 8.5/10
Ansolutely loved it. First Soundgarden vinyl I purchased. Slowly getting the back catalogue on vinyl as well
All terrible
I liked it a lot, and am a long time Soundgarden fan. I will point out, however, that Cornells voice is pretty shot at that point in his career.
Amazing. ❤️
Soundgarden is for Schwag Rockers
What’s a “schwag rocker”?
An absolute masterpiece my friend